Week 2 - Marika Alderton House

WEEK 2

Week 2 found us choosing our Exemplar house of which we have decided to mimic. The house chosen by myself was the Marika Alderton House. The reason I chose this house was because I felt it would benefit my learning most. Through research I found many techniques that Glenn Murcutt used to naturally cool the house. I believe this will be beneficially now and later in my career as an Architect.

Through visual exploration, I found how Glenn Murcutt cooled the house naturally and powerlessly. Quick easy sketches allow me to explain in theory how the Marika Alderton House works.

The photo above shows how the wide eaves of the house stop most of the sunlight hitting the building. Allowing the building to not heat up as quickly as it could. The stilts provide an air passageway underneath the house. Small gaps in the floorboards allow this cool air to rise into the house. The vents also expel the hot air that rises up into the roof and the open plan living allows for constant breezes to cool the home.

Murcutt uses natural cooling techniques as quickly sketched to the left. By opening the different airways into the house different cooling techniques can be applied. By opening the windows all on one side this allows for the breeze to fly straight through the house and expelling any hot air.

Another method is via the roof vents. There are fans on the inside of the roof sucking any rising hot air and shooting them through the vents expelling the air out of the house. Many windows and openings allow for any trapped hot air to be released out of the house therefore in turn cooling the home. The house is meant to open close and breath like a plant. In turn making the home feel in touch with the environment, precisely what the indigenous community of Yirrkala are after.

By using cheap building materials this allows for quick and easy set up. The home is made from pre fabricated materials and requires 2 men to assemble the home start to finish in just 3 days. By using no glass on the building this allows it to be hurricane proof at winds up to 66 m/s (~ 240 km/h). The home is to withstand gale force winds, floods (due to stilts) and anything the weather throws at it. Murcutt pays close attention to the sun, moon, season and designs buildings to harmonize with the light and wind. Hence why the shutters are versatile and allow for opening and closing at different angles depending on any sunlight.

Floor Plan

Elevation

Critical Section

Site Plan

3d Drawing